Legislating The Wrong Things…

It’s not often that both #landlords and #tenants can agree on any subject but this piece of ill judged legislation appears to consolidate opinions. After a week of failing to pass any form of bill that actually might help tenants it appears, to suit the political climate, forcing landlords to weed out illegal immigrants is something for which the private rental sector really needs responsibility for.

As very well put in the articles from both the Telegraph and Generationrent.org below this will basically lead to racial profiling and increased fees. The government is simply trying to shift the duty of trained border control staff onto Landlords and introducing a hefty fine should they get it wrong. What we need is bills that help not bills that hinder and actually make the situation worse.

Jeremy Corbyn, MP for Islington North, has tabled an Early Day Motion to protest this policy. Generationrent.org has a way you can ask your MP to sign it here.

The new requirements – which are trialled in the west Midlands from Monday – are part of the Government’s attempts to cut down on migrants coming to the UK. landlords who let out a second home are likely only to rent to “white tenants with British-sounding names” to avoid immigration red tape, campaigners have warned.

While discrimination is illegal, some landlords could refuse to let properties to people with a non-British ethnic background, whether they are immigrants or not. If a #tenant requires a check with the Home Office that can take 2 days to complete, lettings agents are not going to choose them if there are other acceptable tenants with a UK passport also wanting the property.

What We Think…

With the housing situation in the UK seemingly becoming beyond an entire generations affordability the term Generation rent was forged. It describes how that generation has been priced out of the market for property and are locked into an unforgiving and inflexible rental market .
It’s shocking to see how many websites there are out there that use the term Generation Rent to inform landlords and homeowners how best to exploit them.
That’s why we chose to launch Generation-rent.com, to give those who are trapped in this demoralising position a voice and a place to gain further insight into why this has happened to them.